Carton construction



Feb. 8, 1938. w. H. lNMAN CARTON CONSTRUCTION Filed Sept. 15, 1956 2 Sheets- Sheet l %z5ATroRNEYs Feb. 8, 1938. w. H. HNMAN 2,107,946

CARTON CONSTRUCTION Filed Sept. 15, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheei 2 %z&; ATTORNEYS Patented Feb. 8, 1938 Y UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CARTON CONSTRUCTION Application September 15, 1936, Serial No. 160,907

6 Claims.

This invention relates to cartons, and especially to cartons made of sheet material such as cardboard or carton stock.

An object of the invention is to provide an 6 improved, simple and economical carton suitable for use in packing cheese, ice cream, or various other articles or products, especially but not necessarily food products.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a carton of this kind which is of unusual shape so that, by the oddness of its shape, it will attract attention and result in increased sales.

Still another object is the provision of a carton so shaped that a number of similar cartons may be more compactly packed in a cylindrical can of the type Commonly used for holding ice cream.

A further object is the provision of a carton so designed that it may be filled with ice cream, cottage cheese and similar products with great rapidity, without trappingair in the carton during the filling operation.

A still further object is the provision of a carton which can be packed and shipped in knock down or collapsed form occupying a minimum of space, and which can be instantly erected by the user when he desires to fill it.

A still further object is the provision of such a carton which can be readily, quickly and completely opened up by the consumer or purchaser, so as to obtain free access to the contained product on all sides but the bottom, thus enabling the product packed in the carton to be cut and served more readily.

To these and other ends the invention resides in certain improvements and combinations of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a carton constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention viewed from one direction;

Fig. 2 is a similar view of the carton viewed from a different direction;

Fig. 3 is a plan of the carton in collapsed form prior to filling it with the product;

Fig. i is a view of the carton blank from which the carton is made;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the carton opened up to obtain access to the product packed therein, and

Figs. 6 to 10 inclusive are views similar to Figs. 1 to 5, respectively, illustrating a modified embodiment of the invention.

The same reference numerals throughout the several views indicate the same parts.

In its preferred form, the carton comprises a single integral piece of carton stock, cardboard, or the like, cut and scored so as to have two approximately rectangular portions 22 and 24 integrally attached to each other at a score line 26, and two triangular walls 28 and 36, each integrally hinged to one edge of the rectangular Wall 22 by score lines 32 and 34 respectively.

The triangular wall 28 has a flap 36 integrally hinged to the triangular wall along the score line 38, and this flap 36 has a zone or area it of adhesive which, when the carton blank is formed up into the carton, overlies the outer surface of the rectangular wall 24 and forms an adhesive connection therewith. The adhesive zone 40 does not cover the entire area of the flap 36, however, but leaves a substantial portion of the flap not covered with adhesive, as plainly shown in Fig. 4, so that this non-adhesive portion forms a convenient tab which may be readily grasped and pulled away from the wall 24 to detach the flap 36 from the wall and break the adhesive connection between them.

The other triangular wall 36 has a similar flap M which, like the flap 36, is hinged to the wall 36 along the score line 46 and which has an adhesive zone 48 covering only a part of the area of the fiap and adapted to overlie the outer side of the wall 24 near the opposite edge thereof from the flap 36.

Suitable closure flaps are formed on appropriate edges of the rectangular and triangular walls above mentioned. For example, the wall 22 has a closure flap 56 hinged to it along the score line 52. The wall 24 has a closure fiap 54 hinged to it along the score line 66. The wall 28 has a closure flap 58 hinged to it along the score line 66, while the other triangular wall 36 has a closure flap 62 hinged to it along the score line 64. The closure flap 58 is provided with a tongue 68 which may extend through and interlock with a slot 76 in the closure flap 62. When the carton is erected and filled with the desired product, the flaps 5E] and 5d are first folded down in overlapping relation to each other, and then the flaps 58 and 62 are folded down in overlapping relation to each other and to the flaps 56 and 54, the tongue 68 being inserted through the slot 16 to hold the flaps in closed position. The closure fiaps when thus closed constitute a third rectangular wall extending from one edge of one of the triangular walls to the corresponding edge of the other triangular wall.

In order that the carton may be collapsed to substantially flat condition for packing and shipment, the triangular wall 28 is provided with a score line 18 extending substantially from the apex of the. angle between the sides 32 and 38 in a direction across the wall 28 and continued across the flap 58, and bisecting the angle between the sides 32 and 38. Similarly, the other triangular wall 38 has a score line 80 extending substantially from the apex of the angle between the sides 34 and 46 in a direction across the wall 30' and across the attached closure flap 62, and bisecting the angle between 34 and 46.

In forming up or manufacturing the carton, the blank shown in Fig. 4 is first folded about the score line 26 to bring the wall 24 down on top of the wall 22. Then the triangular walls 28 and 30 are folded about their intermediate score lines 18 and 80, respectively, to bring one-half of each triangular wall down on top of the other half thereof and to bring the associated flaps 36 and 44 down on top of the outer surface of the wall 24, so that these flaps become secured to the wall 24 by the adhesive 48 and 48. The manufacture of the carton is now complete, and the carton lies substantially fiat having the appearance shown in Fig. 3.

When it is desired to use the carton, the user pushes the two side edges (that is the score lines 18 and 80) toward each other, thus causing the triangular walls to assume a'flat or plane form instead of the folded form of Fig. 3. As the triangular walls unfold to their plane form, the rectangular walls 22 and 24 swing away from each other. In order to assist this opening up or erecting operation, the score lines 32, 34, 38 and 45 may be pre-broken if desired, but when these score lines are left unbroken it simply requires a.

slight additional force to break the scores in erecting the carton, and in either event the erecting operation takes but a moment.

When the carton has been erected the prismatic space between the two triangular walls and the two rectangular walls is filled with the desired product, and then the closure flaps 50, 54, 58 and 62 are folded down over the product and the tongue 68 inserted through the slot 10 to lock the closure in closed position. The filled and closed carton then has the appearance shown in Figs. 1 and 2. It may be noted that, because of the triangular cross section of the prismatic space within the carton, the carton may be filled very easily with plastic or semi-plastic material such as ice cream, cottage cheese and the like, and the filling material may very easily be packed down solidly into all corners of the carton, filling it completely. Air is not usually trapped in the corners of the carton to prevent complete filling as is often the case with various other types of cartons.

When the consumer or purchaser reaches his destination and desires to remove the contents of the carton, he may do so very easily by disengaging the closure flaps from each other, to open up the closure, and by pulling the tab or unsecured portions of the flaps 86 and 44 outwardly away from the wall 24 to which they are adhesively secured, thus breaking the adhesive connection between the flaps 3S and 34 and the wall 24, and releasing the. triangular walls from the rectangular wall 2a, so that the triangular wall structure with its associated closure flaps and adhesive flaps, may be swung outwardly and downwardly into the plane of the wall 22, as shown in Fig. 5. The contents packed in the carton, indicated diagrammatically at E2, is then completely exposed on all sides except the bottom which rests upon the fiat wall 22, and thus the contents 72 can be neatly and easily cut into slices or otherwise served. It is not necessary to cut any part of the carton with a knife, nor is it necessary to insert a knife between the contents and side walls of the carton in order to remove the contents therefrom in a solid block.

All or any part of the carton blank may be parafiined on one or both surfaces, or otherwise treated in any desired way.

Preferably the triangular walls 28 and 30 are substantially in the shape of isosceles triangles with the sides 32, 34, 38 and 46 of equal length. Preferably, also, the triangular walls are equilateral triangles, the edges 60 and 64 being equal in length to the other edges, although these edges 60 and 64 could be longer or shorter than the other edges if desired. It is also preferred in most cases that the walls 22 and 24 be substantially square.

These triangular cartons not only have an unusual and, therefore, an attention arresting appearance, but also have a shape which is conducive to easy and compact packing in a cylindrical ice cream can of the usual size. Thus, if a dealer Wishes to fill a number of such cartons With ice cream in advance of and preparatory to making sales thereof, he may pack such cartons in an ice cream can in his cooler, placing the cartons with their rectangular walls substantially vertical and their triangular walls substantially horizontal and arranging the cartons to form a polygon around the vertical central axis of the can. The dimensions of the cartons are preferably such that each edge is a little less than the radius of the standard size ice cream can, thus enabling the cartons to be packed easily in such cans in the above mentioned compact manner.

In Figs. 6 to 10 inclusive, there is shown a carton constructed in accordance with a slight modification of the invention. In this other carton, the parts 22 to 48 inclusive may be identical with the preferred form previously described, and these parts 22 to 48 inclusive are indicated in Figs. 6 to 10 by the same reference numerals used for the corresponding parts in Figs. 1 to with the addition of the letter a to each numeral. The only difference between these two embodiments of the invention is in the closure flaps.

In the alternative form, the triangular Wall 28a may be provided with a flap l6 hinged to it along the score line 18, and the other triangular wall 3Ila may be provided with a similar flap 8| hinged to it along the score line 82. These two flaps are what may be termed the inside or lower closure flaps. A flap 84 hinged to the wall 22a along the score line 86 is provided with a slit 88 to receive a tongue 90 on a closure flap 92 hinged to the wall 24a along the score line 94. The flaps 84 and 92 constitute the outer closure flaps to be folded down over the flaps l6 and 80, the tongue 90 being placed in the slit 88 to lock the closure flaps releasably to each other.

All other features of this alternative form may be the same as the form'previously described, and this form of carton is used in the same manner.

Preferably the flaps 36, 44, 36a, and 44a, lie on the outside surfaces of the Walls 24 and 24a, respectively, as above described. But it is within the scope of this invention to secure these flaps to the inner surfaces of the respective walls, if desired. If this be done, the carton may still be pulled apart so as to open up flat, as previously 75' described, by using the flaps 54 or 92, respectively, as pull tabs, to pull the wall 24 or 24a, respectively, outwardly away from the flaps 36 and 44, or 36a and 44a, instead of pulling the flaps outwardly away from the wall.

Instead of providing the closure flaps with the commonly used hook lock 68, 10 or 88, 90, the closure flaps may be provided with the special interengaging locking parts disclosed in U. S. Patent 1,950,934, granted March 13, 1934, for an invention of John P. Shearer, and assigned to the assignee of this present application. The locking arrangement shown in said Shearer patent has the advantage of securing the closure flaps more firmly and solidly to each other, thus reducing side sway of the flaps and holding the carton more accurately in its true shape.

While certain embodiments of the invention have been disclosed, it is to be understood that the inventive idea may be carried out in a number of ways. This application is therefore not to be limited to the precise details described, but is intended to cover all variations and modifications thereof falling within the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A carton comprising sheet material cut, scored, and folded to provide two approximately equilateral triangular walls spaced from-and approximately parallel to each other, and two approximately rectangular walls each extending from one edge of one triangular wall to the corresponding edge of the other triangular wall, one of the triangular walls being integrally hinged along one of its edges to one edge of one of the rectangular walls and the other of said triangular walls being integrally hinged along its corresponding edge to the opposite edge of the same one of said rectangular walls, each of the triangular walls having along another edge an integrally hinged flap overlapped with and adhesively secured to the other of said rectangular walls on the outer surface thereof, and each of said triangular and rectangular walls having along one edge a flap adapted to cooperate with flaps on other walls to form a closure for the third side of the triangular body.

2. A carton comprising sheet material cut, scored, and folded to provide two approximately triangular walls spaced from and approximately parallel to each other and two approximately rectangular walls each extending from one edge of one triangular wall to the corresponding edge of the other triangular wall, each of the triangular walls being integrally hinged along one of its edges to one edge of one of the rectangular walls,

each of the triangular walls having along another edge an integrally hinged flap overlapped with and adhesively secured to the other of said rectangular walls, and each of said triangular walls having a score line running substantially from the apex of the angle between the two rectangular sides across the triangular side in a direction substantially bisecting such angle, so that each triangular side may be folded about such score line to collapse the carton to bring said two rectangular sides substantially against each other.

3. A collapsible carton adapted to open flat to obtain easy access to contents, said carton comprising sheet material cut, scored, and folded to provide two approximately triangular walls spaced from and approximately parallel to each other and two approximately rectangular walls each extending substantially from one edge of one triangular wall to the corresponding edge of the other triangular wall, each of said triangular walls being integrally hinged along one edge to one edge of one of the rectangular walls, each of said triangular walls having a flap integrally hinged to another edge of the triangular wall and overlapped with and adhesively connected to the other rectangular wall throughout a part of the area only of each flap, a marginal portion of each flap being not adhesively connected to said other rectangular wall so that the unconnected portion of each flap forms an accessible tab portion which may be grasped to pull the flap away from said other rectangular wall to break the adhesive connection between them, closure flaps integrally hinged to the third edges of each of said triangular walls and to one edge of each of said two rectangular walls, and a score line in each triangular wall extending substantially from the apex of the angle between said two rectangular walls across the triangular wall and across the closure flap hinged thereto, so that each triangular wall and associated closure flap may be doubled upon itself about said score line to collapse the carton into substantially flat condition.

4. A construction according to claim 3 in which each of said rectangular walls is substantially square.

5. A construction according to claim 3 in which each of said triangular walls is substantially an equilateral triangle:

6. A construction according to claim 3 in which each of said triangular walls is substantially an equilateral triangle and each of said rectangular walls is substantially square.

WILLIAM H. INMAN. 

